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Group begins process to name Beaches island

It would be just a name; no government changes

The area encompassing the Jacksonville Beaches from Mayport south to Vilano Beach became an island in 1912, when two rivers along the western border were connected by the creation of a 10-mile, man-made canal between today's Palm Valley Bridge and Marsh Landing.

But the seven diverse communities have never had a collective identity, much less a name.

A group of Beaches citizens wants to change that.

To celebrate next year's 100th year anniversary of being an island, they have started a campaign to name it San Pablo Island.

They held their first meeting Thursday night at the Holiday Inn Express in Jacksonville Beach. Their next step is to draw up an official document to gather public support for the idea.

The initiative would not require any legislation or changes in governments. Using the name on brochures or documents would be voluntary.

The idea is to brand the island, to give it an identity like islands to the north and south, said Kurtis Loftus of Jacksonville Beach, who led the meeting.In a power point presentation, he showed maps of the Jacksonville-area coast with named islands including St. Simons, Jekyll and Cumberland in Georgia and Amelia, Big Talbot, Little Talbot and Anastasia in Florida. But the island encompassing the Beaches communities has no name.

"I think it is a wonderful thing for the area," said John Meserve, former mayor of Atlantic Beach. Meserve, who tried to start a similar campaign about eight years ago, said "most people don't realize this is really an island."

For marketing purposes, "islands sell," he said. The word island "has a nice ring to it" and would help sell the area nationally.

Having a collective island identity would help property values, tourism and identification, Meserve said. The individual cities would not need to change their names, and use of the name San Pablo Island would be optional on brochures or any other documents, so it wouldn't cost money.

Loftus, president of a Jacksonville Beach advertising, design and public relations company, volunteered to create a blog so people can go to it and learn more about the project and express their opinions.

The group discussed several name possibilities, including Pablo Island, The Beaches Island and Paradise Island. But they settled on San Pablo Island because the name has historical significance to the area.

A Spanish mission called San Pablo existed on the coast as far back as 1587, though its location remains unknown. In the 1790s, there was a plantation by that name, from Fleet Landing in Atlantic Beach to Fourth Avenue South in Jacksonville Beach. A town called Pablo was nestled in the area near today's Wonderwood Expressway. Jacksonville Beach used to be Pablo Beach.

In addition to Loftus and Meserve, the group includes Neil McGuinness, area historian and author; Linda Lanier, executive director of Jax Kids; John Bryan, director of the Jacksonville Chamber of Commerce Beaches Division; Shawn LeNoble, general manager of the Holiday Inn Express; Maarten van de Guchte, executive director of the Beaches Museum & History Center; and Phyllis Tousey of Atlantic Beach.

They plan to meet again in two or three weeks, after McGuinness creates a one- or two-page document summarizing the proposal. He said with documented community support, which could include residents' signatures, the island could be officially named through a government naming organization.

Tousey, a lifelong Beaches resident whose great-grandparents settled in the area in 1915, said she is excited about the island having a name.

When friends visit and walk on the beach, they ask, "What is the name of this island?" she said.

It's "embarrassing" to tell them it doesn't have one, she said. "So I'm glad somebody's going to do something about it."